The School of Graduate

Studies

Handbook and Style Guide for

Dissertations and Theses

Third Edition, 2010

Dr. Mark Garrison, Interim Dean

1700 East Cold Spring Lane
McKeldin Center, Suite 310
Baltimore, MD 21251
Phone: 443.885.3185
Fax: 443.885.8226

© 2010 The School of Graduate Studies, Morgan State University, Baltimore, MD

 Table of Contents

Chapter 1: University Expectations for Preparing a Dissertation or Thesis ...................1

Introduction .................................................................................................................... 1
Standards for the Dissertation ........................................................................................ 1
Standards for the Thesis ................................................................................................. 2
Author of the Dissertation or Thesis ............................................................................... 3
Graduate Students’ Responsibilities ............................................................................... 3
Committee Chairpersons’ and Committee Members’ Responsibilities ......................... 4
School of Graduate Studies’ Responsibilities ................................................................. 4
Shared Understanding of the Dissertation or Thesis ...................................................... 5
Registering the Copyright ............................................................................................... 6

Chapter 2: University Expectations for Academic Conduct and Ethical Research ..........7
Federal Policy on Research Misconduct ......................................................................... 7
Definitions and Penalties of Academic Dishonesty and Plagiarism ................................ 7
V.3. Academic Dishonesty .......................................................................................... 7
V.4. Penalties For Academic Dishonesty .................................................................... 8
Document Review ........................................................................................................... 9

Chapter 3: Before You Prepare the Manuscript.......................................................... 10

Follow your Specific Program Guidelines ..................................................................... 10
Review Past Copies of Dissertations/Theses ................................................................ 10
Determine the Validity and Authority of Research Taken from the Internet .............. 11
Choose an Appropriate Style Manual ........................................................................... 11
Secure Written Permission for Use of Copyrighted Material ....................................... 11
Secure Written Permission for use of Human Subjects ................................................ 12
Obtain Editorial, Proofreading, or Typing Assistance ................................................... 12
Obtain Electronic Storage Devices ................................................................................ 13

Chapter 4: Preparing the Dissertation or Thesis Draft ............................................... 14

Basic Requirements ...................................................................................................... 14
Font Style/Size .............................................................................................................. 14

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Margins ..................................................................................................................... 14
Justification ............................................................................................................... 15
Line Spacing .............................................................................................................. 15
Page Numbers ........................................................................................................... 15
Widows and Orphans................................................................................................ 15
Chapters .................................................................................................................... 16
Formal Elements ........................................................................................................... 16
Front Matter Requirements .......................................................................................... 16
Abstract ..................................................................................................................... 17
Title Page................................................................................................................... 17
Approval Page ........................................................................................................... 18
Dedication ................................................................................................................. 18
Acknowledgments..................................................................................................... 18
Table of Contents ...................................................................................................... 19
List of Tables/List of Figures...................................................................................... 19
List of Illustrations ..................................................................................................... 20
List of Abbreviations ................................................................................................. 20
Body Requirements....................................................................................................... 20
End (Back) Matter Requirements ................................................................................. 20
References or Bibliography ....................................................................................... 20
Appendices................................................................................................................ 21

Chapter 5: Templates and Models of Formal Elements ............................................. 22

Chapter 6: Submitting Your Dissertation or Thesis

to the School of Graduate Studies ......................................................................... 32
When to Submit ............................................................................................................ 32
Before Submitting your Dissertation or Thesis ............................................................. 32
Continuous Enrollment ................................................................................................. 32
Signature Pages ............................................................................................................. 32
Error Free Document .................................................................................................... 33
Upon Submitting your Dissertation or Thesis ............................................................... 33
The Submission Process ................................................................................................ 33
Scheduling a Submission Appointment ........................................................................ 34

Chapter 7: Common Mistakes in Preparing Dissertations and Theses ......................... 36

Default Devils ................................................................................................................ 36
Basic Pagination ............................................................................................................ 36
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Setting Tabs and Spacing .............................................................................................. 36

Fonts.............................................................................................................................. 37
Ellipses........................................................................................................................... 37
Types of Dashes ............................................................................................................ 37
Three-Em-Dash ......................................................................................................... 38
Et al. .............................................................................................................................. 39
Serial Comma ................................................................................................................ 39
Commas and Periods and Quotation Marks ................................................................. 39
Landscaped Pages ......................................................................................................... 39

Appendix A: Research Misconduct............................................................................ 40

Appendix B: Helpful Bibliographies........................................................................... 44

Bibliography: Style Manuals ......................................................................................... 44
Bibliography: Formatting Electronic Sources................................................................ 44
Bibliography: “How-to” Write a Dissertation/Thesis .................................................... 45

Appendix C: Common Problems to Avoid When Writing Your Dissertation or Thesis . 48

Inconsistency................................................................................................................. 48
Improper Emphasis ....................................................................................................... 48
Sloppy Citations ............................................................................................................ 48
Committee/Student Rapport ........................................................................................ 48
Inflated Dedications and Acknowledgements .............................................................. 48

Table of Figures

Figure 1: UMI Advanced Search Function ........................................................................ 10

Figure 2: Required Page Layout for Dissertations and Theses ........................................ 23
Figure 3: Abstract Template ............................................................................................. 24
Figure 4: Model Abstract Page ......................................................................................... 25
Figure 5: Required Title Page Template ........................................................................... 26
Figure 6: Title Page Model ............................................................................................... 27
Figure 7: Required Approval Page Template ................................................................... 28
Figure 8: Sample Approval Page for Physical Manuscript or Submission for ETD ........... 29
Figure 9: Table of Contents Model .................................................................................. 30
Figure 10: Chapter 1 Sample Page ................................................................................... 31
Figure 11: Fees for Copyrighting and Publishing ............................................................. 35
 Chapter 1:
University Expectations for
Preparing a Dissertation or Thesis

Introduction
The School of Graduate Studies publishes the Handbook and Style Guide for
Dissertations and Theses (Handbook) in order to assist you in the preparation of your
doctoral dissertation or master’s thesis. In order to provide minimum guidelines
common to all disciplines, this Handbook includes specific format requirements for the
School of Graduate Studies. Information in the Handbook should also be helpful to
graduate coordinators, faculty, advisors, committee chairpersons, and committee
members for understanding standards and requirements for writing dissertations and
theses. The School of Graduate Studies expects that all dissertations and theses will
consist of research that is educationally significant and methodologically sound. At
Morgan State University, dissertations are required for the award of all doctoral
degrees. Currently, all candidates for Master of Arts degrees must prepare theses.
Theses may also be required of candidates seeking Master of Science degrees as well as
candidates from a number of specialized Master’s degrees. Please consult the current
School of Graduate Studies Catalog, 2010-2013 and meet with your graduate advisor to
determine whether your program requires a thesis.

Standards for the Dissertation

The preparation of a dissertation functions primarily as a way to help you, the doctoral
student, understand research methodology and to acquire the scholarly abilities to
advance knowledge and understanding within your academic discipline. Chief among
the research skills is the ability to communicate orally and in writing with colleagues
and/or others about your chosen subject matter. At Morgan, all candidates for doctoral
degrees (PhD, DEng, DrPH, and EdD) are required to conduct original research and
prepare and defend a dissertation. You are encouraged to review dissertation or other
research requirements with your faculty advisors and the graduate coordinators of your
respective degree programs. All doctoral dissertations must meet several important
standards. In order for your dissertation to be accepted by the School of Graduate
Studies, it must:

Demonstrate your thorough knowledge of prior scholarship, including qualitative

or quantitative research relating to the dissertation topic;

Reveal your ability to analyze, critique, interpret, and integrate information from
prior scholarship into hypotheses or research questions sufficient to form the
basis of a dissertation;

Reflect your use of appropriate research methodology, including current data

collection techniques and appropriate data analysis tools including the use of
proper statistical applications and other software applications;

1
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Display your findings in a sequential and logical manner, and when needed,
through the use of appropriate tables, graphs, or other methods of presenting
quantitative or qualitative data;

Include a coherent discussion of the relationships among the prior scholarship,

the hypotheses or research question(s), the findings and data, and the meaning
of the results; and

Reflect a mastery of grammar, punctuation, sentence construction, paragraph

formation, and style consistent with requirements outlined and approved in this
Handbook.

The School of Graduate Studies reserves the right not to accept dissertations that fail to
meet these standards. The general expectation is that the dissertation committee
provides assurance that these standards are met and indicates so with the signatures of
the members being published in the dissertation.

Standards for the Thesis

The purpose of the thesis is to help you, the master’s student, acquire the research,
methodological, and communication skills necessary for discussing and potentially
contributing to knowledge and understanding within your academic disciplines.

In order to be accepted by the School of Graduate Studies, your thesis must:

Demonstrate your knowledge of prior scholarship relating to the thesis topic;

Reveal your ability to analyze, critique, and integrate information into

hypotheses or research questions sufficient to form the basis for a thesis;

Reflect your use of appropriate research methodology that will result in reliable
findings;

Present your findings in a manner appropriate for displaying quantitative or

qualitative data;

Include a coherent discussion of your findings and the meaning of the results;
and

Reflect a mastery of grammar, punctuation, sentence construction, paragraph

formation, citations, and style consistent with published research in your
academic discipline.

The School of Graduate Studies reserves the right not to accept theses that fail to meet
these standards. The general expectation is that the thesis committee provides
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assurance that these standards are met and indicates so with the signatures of the
members being published in the thesis.

Author of the Dissertation or Thesis

You are the author of the doctoral dissertation or master’s thesis and, therefore, are
ultimately responsible for ensuring that its production reflects the highest professional
quality in content, style, and grammatical exactness. In addition to this, the
preparation, as well as the evaluation of, dissertations and theses represents a joint
enterprise involving the graduate student, the dissertation or thesis chairperson, other
members of the dissertation or thesis committee, and Dean of the School of Graduate
Studies. All dissertations and theses are to be written in English.

Graduate Students’ Responsibilities

Although you should expect assistance from your committee chair and committee
members, you are held solely responsible for meeting the standards, citation style,
format, and overall quality expected of dissertations and theses. Your responsibilities
include, but are not necessarily limited to, the following:

Choosing a dissertation or thesis topic that represents your own original

research;

Consulting regularly with committee chairpersons and committee members to

review progress on the development of chapters in the dissertation or thesis;

Developing and organizing the subject matter to reflect with clarity the content
and analysis of your arguments and any proposed hypotheses;

Assuring that the quality of data, of the evidence, and of the logical reasoning
presented is consistent with theories, principles, and methodologies of the
discipline;

Assuring that the format, composition, text, layout, and appearance of

illustrations and bibliography are of the highest professional quality;

Certifying the accuracy of references and citations;

Securing copyrights for the dissertation or thesis through UMI/ProQuest;

Securing appropriate permission to reproduce copyrighted material in your

thesis or dissertation; and

Meeting all deadlines set by the School of Graduate Studies for the submission of
dissertations and theses.
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Committee Chairpersons’ and Committee Members’ Responsibilities

The committee chair in particular and the other committee members in general are
responsible for guiding and advising you in researching scholarly literature, using of
appropriate research methodologies, analyzing data, and reporting findings for the
dissertation or thesis. The committee chairperson and committee members are
expected to provide fair and ongoing evaluation of written drafts according to the
standards of the discipline and the standards necessary to satisfy degree requirements.
The responsibilities of the committee chairs and committee members include, but are
not necessarily limited to, the following:

Reviewing your transcript to verify that you are eligible to write the dissertation
or thesis;

Approving your topic(s) and methodology for the dissertation or thesis;

Reading and offering constructive criticism on drafts of the dissertation or thesis

related to the quality of your data and evidence, your reasoning, your editorial
and linguistic quality, and your references and citations;

Guiding and advising your work in reference to its organization and content;

Evaluating the dissertation or thesis based on the requirements of the degree for
which you are a candidate;

Helping you prepare your manuscript for scholarly publication;

Reviewing the research and the manuscript for concerns related to academic
integrity and providing evidence that such a review has occurred;

Assisting you in meeting the deadlines as established by the School of Graduate

Studies for the oral defense and in submitting your dissertation or thesis to the
School of Graduate Studies.

In its evaluation of the dissertation or thesis, the committee may assign the following
assessments:
Passed (no corrections needed).
Conditionally Passed (minor adjustments are needed in substance and/or
format).
Deferred (major adjustments are needed in substance and/or format).
Failed (needed adjustments are too extensive, or you failed to satisfactorily
defend).

School of Graduate Studies’ Responsibilities

The Dean of the School of Graduate Studies is responsible for certifying that you have
met the standards for the production of dissertations or theses. Although the review of
 5

your dissertations and theses by the Dean or the Dean’s designee centers primarily on
conformity to the elements of style as outlined in this Handbook, the Dean is also
concerned with the quality of the content and analysis reflected in the dissertation or
thesis. Only after certification by the Dean are dissertations or theses accepted. The
Dean of the School of Graduate Studies (or the Dean’s designee) is responsible for:

Publishing dissertation and thesis requirements in consultation with the College

and School Deans, department chairpersons, and graduate coordinators;

Advising graduate students, committee chairs, and other committee members

about the standards for preparation of the dissertation or thesis;

Preparing an annual calendar listing the dates and deadlines by which

dissertations and theses must be submitted to the School of Graduate Studies
and the dates and deadlines by which the results of oral defenses of
dissertations must be reported to the School of Graduate Studies;

Reviewing each dissertation or thesis to ensure that it has been prepared in

conformity with the requirements prescribed in this Handbook; and

Certifying or denying that the dissertation or thesis has met the necessary
standards, including standards related to academic integrity.

Shared Understanding of the Dissertation or Thesis

Broadly speaking, the dissertation or thesis should be understood as a common
enterprise reflecting the academic rigor of the programs requiring them, the mastery
and expertise achieved by the author of the work, and the academic and research
integrity of the University. The quality of a university can be judged harshly by its critics,
and the first place these critics look is the production of research and the success of its
graduates. Morgan State University is classified as a Doctoral Research University by the
Carnegie Foundation, and this classification rests upon the successful graduation of
doctoral students in research fields.

The dissertations and theses prepared by Morgan students must reflect the highest
standards of academic preparation and integrity. A bound copy with the original
signatures of the committee will be placed in the University library in a collection of
published dissertations and theses. This copy must be identical to the copy available
through the UMI/ProQuest service that provides copyright and publishing services for
almost all the graduate schools in the country and many throughout the world. Through
contemporary Web-based technology, the dissertations and theses are delivered to
UMI/ProQuest as Portable Document Files, or PDFs. This process is described later in
the Handbook. However, there is an important point here, that the manuscript is
essentially a published work, in most cases a publication of original research findings
and, in others, publication of original critical analysis. Several have been creative works,
 6

including screen plays and parts of novels. As books, the published dissertations and
theses must conform to specific stylistic standards set by Morgan State University.
Therefore, when preparing these publishable works, the author must keep in mind that
the quality must be durable and that the style and formatting must be impeccable.

Sometimes, there appear to be conflicts between the chosen style manual and the
requirements of this Handbook. Upon careful review you will realize that the manuals
of style all recognize that the dissertations and theses prepared using the style dictated
by the profession must also conform to the requirements of the graduate schools to
which they will be submitted. Furthermore, these manuals of style guide the style and
formatting required of journal submissions—a consideration that is one step prior to
publication. In fact, many requirements are designed to ease the effort required for
copy review and preparation (copy-editing) for the journal publication. Upon
publication, the final article appears quite different from the submitted manuscript. All
journals publish in single space print, and all journals place figures and tables in the text
rather than at the end. Given that the finished dissertation or thesis will be printed
from the final PDF in book form, the guiding stipulations of this Handbook are designed
to help the author provide a “camera-ready” copy that is easy to read. For this reason,
footnotes should be placed at the bottom of each the page—not at the end of chapters.
Tables and figures should also appear in the text rather than at the end of the
manuscript. Typographical marks like em-dashes and en-dashes should be used. These
features are easily accomplished with contemporary word processing programs. Items
like double spacing are retained because the standard paper size (8.5 by 11 inches) is
much larger than traditional books, and reading in this format is easier.

Registering the Copyright

The copyrighting of your work occurs in a technical sense when you first put words into
the manuscript (whether on paper or in digital form). The registering of a copyright
provides the author and the publisher certain rights to pursue those who violate the
copyright. Morgan State University now requires that you register your copyright
through UMI/ProQuest in order to protect you, the student, your advisors, and the
University.
 7

Chapter 2:
University Expectations for
Academic Conduct and Ethical Research

The School of Graduate Studies at Morgan promotes responsible and ethical research
among graduate students. You are cautioned to avoid practices that threaten the
integrity of your research, including, but not limited to, falsification or fabrication of
data, violations of privacy and confidentiality provisions, conflicts of interest, cheating,
plagiarism, and copyright infringements. Unethical research threatens the integrity of
academic and scientific enterprise and may subject you to severe penalties.

Federal Policy on Research Misconduct

Research for dissertations and theses are often supported by funds from federal
agencies. Thus, research misconduct may subject graduate students whose research is
supported (entirely or in part) by federal funds to federal sanctions. Federal policy
defines research misconduct as fabrication, falsification, or plagiarism in proposing,
performing, or reviewing research, or in reporting research results. According to federal
policy, fabrication is making up data or results and recording or reporting them.
Falsification is manipulating research materials, equipment, or processes, or changing or
omitting data or results such that the research is not accurately represented in the
research record. Plagiarism is the appropriation of another person’s ideas, results, or
words without giving appropriate credit. Research misconduct does not include honest
error or differences of opinion. Federal sanctions for research misconduct include, but
are not limited to, letters of reprimand, the imposition of special certification or
assurance requirements, suspension or termination of an active award, or suspension
and debarment in accordance with applicable government-wide rules. In the event of
suspension or debarment, the information is made publicly available through the List of
Parties Excluded from Federal Procurement and Nonprocurement Programs maintained
by the U. S. General Services Administration (Federal Register, December 6, 2000:
Vol.65/No.235). The GSA now maintains a website, the Excluded Parties List
System(EPLS) (https://www.epls.gov/) that provides a current listing of all who have
been suspended or debarred from federal contracts. The complete code is reproduced
in Appendix A

Definitions and Penalties of Academic Dishonesty and Plagiarism

The following passages are from the School of Graduate Studies Catalog, 2010-2013,
Academic Regulations; Section V. Responsible Academic Conduct and Ethical Research
(pages 53–54):
V.3. ACADEMIC DISHONESTY
Academic dishonesty is among the most egregious offenses a student can
commit because it interferes with the University’s primary mission of educating
and evaluating students.

Academic dishonesty, including cheating, plagiarism, abuse of academic/library

materials, stealing and lying, in the preparation of testing, class assignments, or
dissertations and theses is no less egregious. Academic dishonesty, whether in
 8

the classroom or in the preparation of the dissertation or thesis, will not be

tolerated by the School of Graduate Studies. In particular, any graduate student
found to have engaged in plagiarism in the writing and preparation of course
work, research papers and/or in the preparation of a dissertation or thesis shall
be subject to the full range of penalties at the disposal of the School of
Graduate Studies.

Plagiarism is submitting, either orally or in writing, the words, ideas, drawings,

or other works of another person as one’s own without appropriate citation in
order to receive credit for having completed an academic assignment or
exercise.

Examples: Examples of plagiarism include, but are not limited to, the
following:

Submitting material or work for evaluation, in whole or in part, which

has been prepared by another student, by an author of a published
article or textbook, or by persons producing papers for profit;
Using a direct quote from another student’s papers or from an author of
a publication without including the appropriate citation;
Paraphrasing or summarizing another’s work without including the
appropriate citation; and,
Using information stored electronically (e.g., submission of papers and
or information found on computer disks, the Internet, etc.) without
including appropriate citation and/or acknowledging the source.

V.4. PENALTIES FOR ACADEMIC DISHONESTY

Any graduate student at Morgan State University who is found to have engaged
in academic dishonesty, including plagiarism, in the preparation of written
assignments, a dissertation or thesis, may be subjected to suspension, expulsion
and/or revocation of a previously awarded degree. Such sanctions may be
imposed even though the accused graduate student may never have received a
lesser penalty or penalties for previous academic dishonesty.

Suspension from the University. Suspension can be imposed for a specified

period, not to exceed two years.
Expulsion from the University. Expulsion is a permanent separation from the
University.
Revocation. When acts of academic dishonesty are found to invalidate a major
piece of work required for a degree so that the validity of the degree or
certification is jeopardized, then the sanction may include a recommendation
from the Dean of the School of Graduate Studies to the University’s Provost and
Vice President for Academic Affairs to:

1. reject a dissertation, thesis or other work.

2. revoke a certification or not grant a certification.
3. revoke a degree.
 9

Document Review
The School of Graduate Studies currently utilizes a service called “Urkund” to process
manuscripts for possible academic integrity and plagiarism transgressions. Also
available to the student and the advisor is the service that is incorporated into the
Blackboard Online Course Management System. This service is called “Safe Assign.”
Urkund currently provides the capability of checking the submitted documents against
the UMI/ProQuest database, thereby providing a far more robust investigation than the
current major checking services. Each dissertation and thesis will be processed through
Urkund, and the results will be examined for the extent of inappropriate citation,
quotations without attribution, and related matters. No software tool is perfect for this
chore, and the results must be reviewed. For instance, the system will identify
quotations as matches even if the author has properly cited the work and provided
appropriate indications of the source and presence of quoted materials. The reviewer
must distinguish the appropriately attributed work from that which has been
inappropriately attributed.

Several dangers persist even with the use of these software services. Some individuals
will repeatedly submit their work through Safe Assign until it comes through “clean.”
This practice is dishonest and itself violates the principles of academic integrity. The
objective of a dissertation or a thesis includes producing original work and presenting
reviews and critical analysis as a product of one’s own writing. Scrubbing the document
for copied material with repeated re-phrasing in an effort to get the copied material to
pass the system is not evidence of original scholarly research. For those who do not
grasp the nature of this problem, be assured that the service providers who have
designed the plagiarism checkers are working on new algorithms to detect excessive
paraphrasing—and even detecting the products of this scrubbing technique.

The worst consequence for products of paraphrased work is that at some point, should
you have copied and then rendered the work free of the detectable paraphrasing, the
author of the original idea may stumble upon your manuscript and recognize that his or
her ideas have been appropriated by another person without proper attribution.
Authors who find themselves wronged in this manner often bring attention not only to
the violator but to the institution that appears to have condoned the misappropriation.
A consequence of this could be the third option discussed above of revoking a degree.
The best course of action is to do your own writing and submit your own work, with
careful attention to the citation methods required in your discipline.
 10

Chapter 3:
Before You Prepare the Manuscript

Follow your Specific Program Guidelines

Prior to writing the dissertation or thesis and enrolling in Dissertation Seminar (__ 998)
or Thesis Seminar (__ 799), and then, continuously in Dissertation Guidance (__ 997) or
Thesis Guidance (__ 797) you must:

Possess the minimum grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher to be in good
academic standing in your degree program,

Have successfully completed all residency requirements for the doctoral

program in which you are enrolled and be officially admitted to candidacy
(Students pursuing Master’s degrees must have successfully completed a
majority of their courses and/or credits required in their degree program), and

You must have passed all qualifying examinations including, but not necessarily
limited to, comprehensives examinations and language proficiency
examinations.

Review Past Copies of Dissertations/Theses

You may find it helpful to review and examine other dissertations or theses prepared by
successful recent graduates in your major in order to gain some basic understanding of
the organization and placement of the various components. As requirements may have
changed, you should not assume that the format of these copies is appropriate for you.
You may research electronic copies of MSU dissertations and theses at UMI/ProQuest’s
database search engine at http://proquest.umi.com/login. This access is direct if you
log in from a computer on campus. If you need access from a computer not in the
campus network, please contact the library for necessary access codes and directions.
Once in the search engine, you can locate all Morgan dissertations and theses by
selecting dissertation database; “school name/code”; and finding Morgan State
University in school listings. See Figure 1: UMI Advanced Search Function.

Figure 1: UMI Advanced Search Function

 11

Students are also encouraged to review appropriate publications, including textbooks

and refereed journals, in which they could consider publishing a chapter or section of
their dissertation or thesis.

Determine the Validity and Authority of Research Taken from the Internet
To ensure that your sources are trustworthy, you must evaluate the validity and
authority of research gleaned from the Internet prior to including it as scholarly
research. The following Web site at the University of Maryland Libraries address
provides helpful criteria for doing this: http://www.lib.umd.edu/UES/evaluate.html.

Choose an Appropriate Style Manual

Each discipline follows a standard format for its scholarly publications. To verify the
preferred style manual in your discipline, consult your advisor. You will refer to a style
manual in order to learn a system of formatting—whether it involves blocking direct
quotations, presenting data, or including electronic source citations. If you have not
already done so at this point in your academic career, you should become familiar with
a professional style manual. For stylistic matters not precisely addressed in this
Handbook, refer to the manual that is the current standard in your discipline. Please
remember that the formatting requirements of this Handbook supersede guidelines in
style manuals. For your convenience, Appendix B: Helpful Bibliographies, at the end of
this document provides a bibliography of style manuals and a bibliography for
formatting electronic references.

Secure Written Permission for Use of Copyrighted Material

The Copyright Law of the United States and Related Laws Contained in Tıtle 17 of the
United States Code describes the concept of “Fair Use” that covers most academic and
scholarly uses of copyrighted materials. Section 107 of the Copyright Law (quoted
below) does not provide much detailed guidance, but it does clearly establish
parameters for consideration. For the greatest protection, authors are expected to
provide full attribution when using the ideas, words, pictures, or other works of
another. When in doubt, the best course of action is to request permission from the
holder of the copyright (usually, but not always, the indentified author through the
author’s publisher).

§ 107 · Limitations on exclusive rights: Fair use

Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a
copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords
or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism,
comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom
use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright. In
determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use
the factors to be considered shall include—
1) the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a
commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;
 12

2) the nature of the copyrighted work;

3) the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the
copyrighted work as a whole; and
4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the
copyrighted work.
The fact that a work is unpublished shall not itself bar a finding of fair use if
such finding is made upon consideration of all the above factors.1

There are hundreds, if not thousands, of resources that can help provide guidance with
the issue of seeking permission. Perhaps the very best place to begin is the Morgan
library. Several of the librarians are familiar with the issues and have helped others
before. Keep in mind that, though data is not protected by copyright, the manner in
which an individual displays that data does have copyright protection. When
reproducing an illustration from another published or unpublished work, the author
should ask permission. The most common practice in this circumstance is to grant
limited permission. The restriction might be something like “applies only to this
dissertation, should the author publish another version of the work, additional
permission will be required.” To be sure, the use of even a screen shot of a the search
engine on a Web page like that of UMI/ProQuest Search Engine should be supported
with a request for permission to reprint in a booklet like this Handbook (permission has
been sought by the way).

Secure Written Permission for use of Human Subjects

“Morgan State University is guided by the ethical principles regarding all research
involving humans as subjects as set forth in the report of the National Commission for
the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research entitled
Ethical Principles and Guidelines for the Protection of Human Subjects of Research (the
Belmont Report). In addition, the requirements set forth in Title 45, Part 46 of the Code
of Federal Regulations (45 CFR 46) are upheld. Morgan State University has chosen to
require that research covered by its assurance be conducted in accordance with the
requirements of 45 CFR 46, regardless of the source of funding, or whether there is
funding” (Office of Sponsored Programs, “Policies and Procedures for Protection of
Human Subjects in Research,” p. 2). Students using human subjects in surveys,
interviews, and/or focus groups require written approval from the Institutional Review
Board at the University. Dr. Edet E. Isuk, IRB Administrator, may be contacted by e-mail:
edet.isuk@morgan.edu, phone: 443.885.3447, or at his office: Montebello Complex
302-D.

Obtain Editorial, Proofreading, or Typing Assistance

If you employ someone to type your dissertation or thesis, be sure to provide them with
this Handbook and discuss special disciplinary requirements with them, including

1
Circular 92: Copyright Law of the United States and Related Laws Contained in Tıtle 17 of the United States Code,
October 2009, p. 19.
 13

specific guidelines from the style guide within your field. The School of Graduate Studies
does not recommend individual or corporate editors to its students.

Obtain Electronic Storage Devices

Today, there are multiple means of saving and sharing your written work. Your
committee may use a Blackboard account, Google Documents, or some other form of
sharing and editing electronic work. Both Microsoft Word and Adobe Acrobat have
methods of comments and recommending changes. Of course, paper still works well
with penciled and inked notes. Whatever form you chose for your document, be sure to
keep multiple copies in different places. Save a copy on your computer, another on a
jump drive, and another as an email attachment.

One of the mistakes authors make when working for the first time with a large
document is to use a naming system that does not have suffeciently robust features for
marking copies that may be changed several times a day. Devise a naming and tracking
protocol—and do not depend upon the time and date stamp of the computer. The time
on one computer may be different from that of another, and you may lose the
identification of which document is more recent, etc.
 14

Chapter 4:
Preparing the Dissertation or Thesis Draft

Basic Requirements
The following discussion is meant to be a guide to the basic formatting and stylistic
requirements of a dissertation and thesis that is being prepared for submission to the
School of Graduate Studies at Morgan. Most of these guidelines speak to requirements,
and several provide options within the guidelines. For the most part, they should not be
considered recommendations to be followed selectively or ignored. For the preparation
of the word processing file and eventually the PDF for submission, please consult
UMI/ProQuest’s Preparing Your Manuscript Guide (2009) (http://www.proquest.com/
assets/downloads/products/UMI_PreparingYourManuscriptGuide.pdf).

Font Style/Size
Your respective style manual should guide your selection of fonts. The School of
Graduate Studies recommends the following the font guidelines of UMI/ProQuest. A
key point is that the fonts should be “True-Type Fonts” not scalable fonts. They also
suggest the following font options.

Arial 10pt
Century 11pt
Courier New 10pt
Garamond 12pt
Georgia 11pt
Lucida Bright 10pt
Microsoft Sans Serif 10pt
Tahoma 10pt
Times New Roman 12pt
Trebuchet MS 10pt
Verdana 10pt

You must use the same font style throughout the manuscript for text, headings,
captions, page numbers, and references. Changes in font style and size may be
appropriate when using illustrative or documentary materials. You may use a smaller
font size (while keeping the same font style) when preparing tables, graphs, and charts,
but you should avoid selections smaller than 9 points. Using your discretion for chapter
and section headings, you may increase the font size two or three points. For symbols,
use “Symbol” 12 point or a symbol font that matches your chosen font. Most word
processing software includes a basic symbol font.

Margins
With the exception of the left hand margin, all other margins must be a minimum of 1
inch wide. The left-hand margin must be a minimum of 1 ½ inches wide to permit
 15

binding of the dissertation or thesis. Please remember that all pages must meet these
requirements, including the Title Page, Approval Page, illustrations, and appendices.

Please refer to Figure 2: Required Page Layout for Dissertations and Theses in Chapter 5.

Justification
The text may have full justification or a ragged right margin (“ragged right,” is use in this
Handbook). Please communicate with your advisor about the standards in your
discipline. Full justification with some fonts results in widely-spread text. This makes it
difficult to read. It helps to tests a few pages in PDF format to determine which option
you wish to take.

Line Spacing
Line spacing in the text must be double-spaced. The APA, MLA, and Chicago manuals of
style all give direction for double spacing of references and block quotations. In some
circumstances, exceptions are justified, and these may be single spaced and not spaced
with one and a half lines. The exceptions include long quotations, captions for tables
and figures, footnotes, and scholarly references (e.g., footnotes, bibliography, list of
references.). If the references are single spaced, then the space between references on
the reference page or the bibliography page should be doubled. Consult your style
manual for details.

Page Numbers
Page numbers may be located in one of four locations:

centered 1 inch from the top of the page; or

centered 1 inch from the bottom of the page; or

the top right corner of the page (1 inch from the top edge of the paper and 1
inch from the right edge of the paper); or

the bottom right corner of the page (1 inch from the bottom edge of the paper
and 1 inch from the right edge of the paper).

From the beginning of the Body section of your dissertation or thesis, you must
only use one pagination system. This is to say, for example, that you would not
begin Appendix A with page “1,” but would continue with a successive
pagination pattern.

Please refer to Figure 2: Required Page Layout for Dissertations and Theses in Chapter 5.

Widows and Orphans

A “widow” denotes a short line of type, as one ending a paragraph, carried over to the
top of the next page. An “orphan” denotes a line of type or header beginning a new
paragraph at the bottom of a page. While both are not forbidden, they are not pleasing
 16

elements for purposes of aesthetics and readability. You can fix your word processing
software to prevent widows and orphans automatically. Section headings should not
appear at the bottom of a page without any of the narrative below the heading. Move
these to the top of the next page.

Chapters
Start each chapter on a new page and number the pages consecutively. Remember that
subheadings and text begin one double space beneath numbering located at the top of
the page and stops at least one double space above numbering located at the bottom of
the page. Chapter headings may be no lower than 3 inches from the top of the page.
You are not required, however, to lower the heading or increase the heading font size.
Increases in chapter heading font sizes must not exceed 3 points.

Formal Elements

All dissertations and theses must contain the formal elements discussed below. The
Abstract, Title Page, Approval Page, and Table of Contents must follow the forthcoming
stipulations exactly; other pages, as long as they follow the “Basic Requirements”
described above, may be designed as you deem fit.

The formal elements of the dissertation or thesis must be placed in the following order:

1. Abstract (required, must be first and is not numbered).

2. Title Page (required, must follow Abstract, not numbered, but considered page
Roman numeral “i.” In other words, do not include a page number on your Title
Page).
3. Approval Page (required, must follow Title Page, paginate as Roman numeral
“ii”).
4. Dedication (if present, paginate with lower-case Roman numerals).
5. Acknowledgments (if present, paginate with lower-case Roman numerals).
6. Table of Contents (required, paginate with lower-case Roman numerals).
7. List of Tables (paginate with lower-case Roman numerals).
8. List of Figures (paginate with lower-case Roman numerals).
9. List of Illustrations (paginate with lower-case Roman numerals).
10. List of Abbreviations (optional, paginate with lower-case Roman numerals).
11. Body of Text (required, start pagination at Arabic numeral “1”).
12. References, Works Cited, or Bibliography (required, paginate with Arabic
numerals).
13. Appendices (if present, paginate with Arabic numerals). Some style manuals
reverse the order of appendices and references, and you may do so.

FRONT MATTER REQUIREMENTS

You must organize your dissertation or thesis around the formal elements—further
categorized as front matter, body, and end (back) matter.
 17

Abstract
Required, must be first, not numbered. An abstract should summarize the
dissertation/thesis’ central hypothesis, methodology, findings, and conclusions so that
readers can determine if they wish to read the entire text. An abstract should not
exceed 350 words, though this originated with microfilm editors who would shorten the
abstracts to save space. UMI/ProQuest no longer requires this limit. All dissertations
and theses written at Morgan State University are microfilmed for national and
international distribution. In reviewing scholarly literature, researchers and other
graduate students typically refer to Dissertation Abstracts International, a widely
circulated annual compendium of abstracts of dissertations produced in most
universities in the United States and abroad. For this purpose, once again, the abstract
should be as explicit as possible about major findings and methods used.

For explicit formatting and wording requirements, you must refer to Figure 3: Abstract
Template and Figure 4: Model Abstract Page in Chapter 5.

Title Page

Required, must follow Abstract, not numbered, but considered page Roman numeral “i.”
The title should include words that identify unique or special aspects of your research
and that distinguish it from other studies. A clear title encourages others to want to
read the research. Clear titling is also important for indexing and research purposes.
Make sure that the title is exactly the same on the Abstract, Title Page, Approval Page,
and UMI/ProQuest agreement form. The Title Page must include the following
information:

the full title of your dissertation/thesis (just as it appears on your Abstract page),

your name as it appears in university records,

a standardized degree statement as given below,

Standard Degree Statement:

A [Dissertation OR Thesis] Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements
for the Degree [Doctor of Philosophy, etc. OR Master of Arts, etc.].

the month and year of degree conferment underneath “Morgan State

University.”

For a detailed look at the placement of elements and wording requirements on the Title
Page, you must refer to Figure 5: Required Title Page Template and Figure 6: Title Page
Model in Chapter 5.
 18

Approval Page
Required, must follow Title Page, paginate as Roman numeral “ii.” The Approval Page,
although similar to the title page, displays your committee members’ full endorsement
of your dissertation/thesis. The Approval Page must include the following information:

the full title of your dissertation/thesis (just as it appears on your Title Page),

your name as it appears in university records,

the month and year when you successfully defended your dissertation/thesis,

and signature lines.

In alphabetical order, but with the Chair’s name first, list one committee
member below each necessary signature line. Follow each committee members’
names by a comma and then their highest (terminal) degree.

The chair of the committee is indicated at the end of the first signature line by
the term “_______________, Chair.” Where a student has two Chairs, both are
listed as “_______________, Co-Chair.” In some cases, there may be a
committee chair and a research advisor. These should be identified as well, with
“Chair” on the first line.

For a detailed look at the placement of elements and wording requirements on the
Approval Page, you must refer to Figure 7: Required Approval Page Template and Figure
8: Sample Approval Page for Physical Manuscript or Submission for ETD in Chapter 5.

Dedication
If present, paginate with lower-case Roman numerals. If you want to bestow gratitude
on a special mentor, include a Dedication page. Avoid elaborate or overgenerous
language. Dedications are optional, and when present, should be short statements of
recognition of only one or two people who are particularly significant to you.

Acknowledgments
If present, paginate with lower-case Roman numerals. If you want to recognize
someone for providing distinctive assistance or granting unusual permission(s), include
an Acknowledgements page. The Acknowledgments page should not contain personal,
familial, or religious testimonies. Such testimonials will be required to be removed prior
to publication. Where present, the Acknowledgements page notes the special
contributions of those persons or agencies that assisted or supported you in the writing
of the dissertation or thesis. Most manuals provide directions for writing
acknowledgments appropriate to the discipline.
 19

Table of Contents
Required, continue appropriate pagination sequence with lower-case Roman numerals.
The Table of Contents lists all chapters and headings (including sub-headings) arranged
exactly as those chapters (and sub-headings) appear in the body of the dissertation or
thesis. In addition, the numbering of the entries in the Table of Contents must be
absolutely identical with the numbering system used within the text. For example, if
you number subheadings within Chapter 3 as 3.1, 3.2, and 3.3, this same numbering
must be used in the Table of Contents. You may single-space between chapter
subheadings, but you must double-space between chapters or major sections. You may
choose to use dot leaders or not. No preliminary material preceding the Table of
Contents is listed. Any List of Tables, List of Figures, or List of Illustrations, however,
should appear in the Table of Contents if tables, figures, or illustrations appear in the
text. All back material should appear in the Table of Contents. Please refer to Figure 9:
Table of Contents Model in Chapter 5.

List of Tables/List of Figures

Required if Tables and Figures are used, paginate with appropriate lower-case Roman
numerals. Each list begins on a separate page and is placed immediately after your
Table of Contents. If you have even one figure or one table, you are required to create a
list. Make sure that all captions and numbering correspond with those in your Body and
Table of Contents. You are encouraged to meet with your committee members to
discuss the use of tables and figures. You should also review style manuals reflective of
your discipline or scholarly journals and books published in your discipline for guidance
in the design and organization of tables and figures.

There are, however, several general guidelines that you are expected to follow.
Specifically, a table depicts tabulated data, while a figure depicts photographs, prints,
charts, maps, graphs, plates, drawings, and diagrams. Tables and figures are numbered
separately, and each, including any tables or figures found in the appendices, must bear
a sequential number in its own series. Each table and figure must bear a “caption”
though the caption for a Table is actually a table title. The numbers and titles for tables
are located above the top line of the table, while the numbers and captions for figures
are located below the last line of the figure. Tables or figures should be inserted in the
text following the first reference to it; grouping them at the end of the chapter is to be
discouraged, though, on occasion, such may be necessary. The same is true for placing
the tables and figures at the end of the dissertation or thesis. Remember, this is being
printed as a book, and should flow comfortably for the reader. Contemporary software
provides easy manipulation of the text and figures in order to place them in the text.
You should explore using the features of your word processor to create table and figure
headings and automatic numbering. This also allows for easy table of contents creation.
Oversize tables and figures that are printed in landscape mode (sideways) should be
placed in the dissertation or thesis so that the top of the table or figure is located at the
left side of the page. The table or figure number and caption remain located at the top
of the table or beneath the figure. The orientation of the page number never changes.
 20

Remember to keep the required 1.5” left hand margin. The page number must remain
in the same location when printed as all the other page numbers.

List of Illustrations
Optional, paginate with lower-case Roman numerals. This list is placed immediately
following your Table of Contents, List of Tables, or List of Figures if included.
Technically, all tables and figures are classed as illustrations. You may wish to separate
some illustrations as distinctly different from the others, and these illustrations may
include photos, line drawings, maps, and items that you wish to distinguish from
“Figures.” Please keep in mind that any illustration with tabular (column) presentation
is a table.

List of Abbreviations
(Optional, paginate with lower-case Roman numerals). This list is placed immediately
following your Table of Contents, or List of Tables or List of Figures or Illustrations if
included.

BODY REQUIREMENTS
Required, start pagination at Arabic numeral “1” and number all subsequent pages
consecutively to the end. The body of the dissertation/thesis should be written
continuously (except in the case of avoiding widows and orphans) and double-spaced
(except in previously mentioned instances). Generally, the text includes: an
introduction or preface and occasionally both, a clear statement of the research
problem and/or research objectives, an appropriate review of prior scholarly research, a
description of the materials and methods used to conduct the research, a record of the
findings, discussion and/or analysis of the findings, and a summary and conclusion to
the research. Please refer to Figure 10: Chapter 1 Sample Page in Chapter 5.

Moreover, you should organize the body of your thesis or dissertation around chapters
reflecting content referenced in the preceding paragraph. The review of literature
should be extensive and sufficient enough to guide your research and to assist other
researchers who seek to replicate the research or delve more deeply into the thesis or
dissertation research topic. You are encouraged to review the organizational
requirements of the dissertation or thesis with your committee chairperson and
members.

END (BACK) MATTER REQUIREMENTS

References or Bibliography
Required, paginate with Arabic numerals. Whether you chose to position footnotes for
each chapter at the bottom of the page, at the end of each chapter, or at the end of the
dissertation, or use parenthetical citations throughout with a list of references at the
end, make sure you remain completely consistent throughout your entire
dissertation/thesis. In other words, do not mix citation styles. For instance, do not
place some footnotes at the end of a chapter and also include parenthetical citations.
(Explanatory footnotes are acceptable if using parenthetical citations.)
 21

Appendices
If present, paginate with Arabic numerals consecutively with the prior material. Refer to
your respective style manual to become familiar with what materials belong in your
Appendix, as opposed to your Body. You may include several appendices, which are
labeled consecutively depending on your discipline (A, B, C, etc. or I, II, III, etc.).
Typically, for material to be placed in an appendix, it must be mentioned and discussed
in the text. This is a requirement for APA, and the School of Graduate Studies applies
this rule generally to all appendices.

Do not include a cover page. The margins within the Appendix do not change and labels
should be center-spaced. Original survey or testing documents created in a different
font style are acceptable. In addition, if you use scanned documents from other sources
(and have received the required copyright permissions), they must be legible, free of
photocopying or scanning irregularities, and they must maintain the same margins as
the rest of your document.

As word processing software will usually choose a default font for footnotes, be sure
that the footnotes appear in the one font you have chosen for your dissertation/thesis.
 22

Chapter 5:
Templates and Models of Formal Elements

The following figures illustrate the critical first pages of the dissertation or thesis. They
have been placed here using the automated “table of contents/table of figures” feature.
If pages are added to earlier text or the figures reordered, this table will reorder and
repaginate as well, with the page numbers and figure numbers being updated.
Furthermore, earlier references to the tables have been cross-referenced, and these will
automatically update when needed.

Figure 2: Required Page Layout for Dissertations and Theses ........................................ 23

Figure 3: Abstract Template ............................................................................................. 24
Figure 4: Model Abstract Page ......................................................................................... 25
Figure 5: Required Title Page Template ........................................................................... 26
Figure 6: Title Page Model ............................................................................................... 27
Figure 7: Required Approval Page Template ................................................................... 28
Figure 8: Sample Approval Page for Physical Manuscript or Submission for ETD ........... 29
Figure 9: Table of Contents Model .................................................................................. 30
Figure 10: Chapter 1 Sample Page ................................................................................... 31

The use of carefully constructed templates as your write your dissertation or thesis will
save enormous amounts of energy and untold hours of time. Improper formatting and
after-the-fact repairs frequently have resulted in frustration, anxiety, and even more
errors on the part of submitters. There have been several instances in which such
problems resulted in missed deadlines and delayed graduation.

On the other hand, hasty use of the formatting of others can be equally dangerous, with
materials from another dissertation seeping into one being submitted, and strange
events like incorrect signature pages and title pages. Build the template early and
create a systematic naming and draft numbering process. Confusion increases as you
get closer to the submission date, and with it, errors and anxiety multiply.

With the advent of the electronic submission process (ETD), the only high-quality paper
required is for the title and signature pages. The signature pages will be placed in the
final print and bound books (one of which is placed in the library). Signatures are no
longer copied into the PDF or Microfilm versions prepared by UMI/ProQuest. More of
the submission process is discussed in Chapter 6 of this Handbook.
 23

▲1 inch below upper edge. # #

Template

For the printed signature pages:

Paper is 8½" x 11"

25% Cotton (rag) or higher

20 Pound Weight or heavier

◄ Left margin at least one and a half (1.5) inches from the left page edge.

Right margin should be at least one (1) inch from the right page edge. ►

The page numbers can be placed in the top-center, top flush-right, bottom-center,
or bottom flush-right position marked on this page by the # (number sign). First, use
the header/footer function to set top and side margins for the page numbers and
place page numbers. Then, set the top and bottom margins to position the first and
last lines of text on a page.

▼1 inch from page bottom edge. # #

Figure 2: Required Page Layout for Dissertations and Theses
 24

▲1 inch below upper edge.

ABSTRACT

[Begin typing heading (centered all caps) about 2 to 2¼ inches from top of page]

Title of Dissertation (or Thesis): TYPE YOUR COMPLETE TITLE HERE, ALL CAPS, tabbed to

two inches from left margin. If necessary, continue the title

under the first word of the title double-spaced, do not return to

the left margin. Use 12 point font (this is in 10 point for space

reasons]

[Double Space for name]
[Double Space]
Dissertation/Thesis Chair:
[Your name as it appears in university records, degree, graduation
month and year. Use first initial caps, maintain alignment with
title.]
*Chair’s full name, highest terminal degree+
[Academic department or program of Chair]

[Space three lines]

Place the body of the abstract here, indenting the first paragraph one half

inch and double space the entire abstract. Traditionally, the abstract should not

exceed 350 words.

Do not number this page or any additional abstract pages.

▼1 inch from page bottom edge.

Figure 3: Abstract Template
 25

▲1 inch below upper edge.

ABSTRACT

Title of Dissertation: TYPE YOUR COMPLETE TITLE HERE, ALL CAPS

Name, Ph.D. December 2007

Dissertation Chair: *Chair’s full name, highest terminal degree+

[Academic department or program of Chair]

Place the body of the abstract here, indenting the first paragraph one half

inch and double space the entire abstract. Abstract should not exceed 350 words.

Do not number this page or any additional abstract pages.

▼1 inch from page bottom edge.

Figure 4: Model Abstract Page
 26

▲1 inch below upper edge.

This space must be equal to the line space

below your month and year of graduation
see the red line below

[TYPE COMPLETE, CENTERED TITLE HERE IN ALL CAPS IF NECESSARY,

DOUBLE-SPACED. DO NOT CREATE LINE BREAKS OR BOLD TEXT]

[double space]
by
[double space]
[Type your full name as it appears in University records, but not all caps]

This space must be equal

to the line space below the
standardized language.

A [Dissertation OR Thesis] Submitted in Partial Fulfillment

of the Requirements for the Degree
[Doctor of Philosophy, etc. OR Master of Arts, etc.]
[Use this standardized language, single spaced]

MORGAN STATE UNIVERSITY

[double space]
[Type month (May or December) and year of graduation, not in all caps]

Count, but do not number this page!

▼1 inch from page bottom edge.

Figure 5: Required Title Page Template
 27

▲1 inch below upper edge.

FACTORS AFFECTING PUBLIC PERCEPTION OF

ALCOHOLISM ON COLLEGE CAMPUSES

by

Jane S. Doe

A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment

of the Requirements for the Degree
Doctor of Philosophy

MORGAN STATE UNIVERSITY

May 2011

Count and but do not number this page!

▼1 inch from page bottom edge.

Figure 6: Title Page Model
 28

▲1 inch below upper edge. # ii

This space must be equal to the

Note page
line space below your last
committee member’s name number!

[TYPE COMPLETE, CENTERED TITLE HERE IN ALL CAPS IF NECESSARY,

DOUBLE-SPACED. DO NOT CREATE LINE BREAKS OR BOLD TEXT]

[double space]
by
[double space]
[Type your full name as it appears in University records, but not all caps]
[four spaces]

has been approved

[double space]
[Type month and year of your oral defense, but not all caps]
[six spaces]

DISSERTATION [or THESIS] COMMITTEE APPROVAL:

[four spaces]

When creating signature
lines, tab over six standard
tabs (3 inches)
, Chair
*Chair’s name, highest degree+ *Line
must be at least two inches]

[Member’s name, highest degree+

*Member’s name, highest degree+

[Lines must be aligned with chair
signature line]

▼1 inch from page bottom edge. # #

Figure 7: Required Approval Page Template

 29

ii

COMPARISONS OF THE NATURE OF PERSONAL BETRAYAL

IN OTHELLO AND HAMLET

by

John A. Doe

has been approved

March 2011

DISSERTATION [or THESIS] COMMITTEE APPROVAL:

, Chair
William Shakespeare, Ph.D.

Robert Blake, Ph.D.

Benjamin Jonson, Ph.D.

Figure 8: Sample Approval Page for Physical Manuscript or Submission for ETD
 30

iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS

List of Tables.............................................................................................................v

List of Figures ........................................................................................................ viii

Chapter 1: Introduction.......................................................................................... 1
Sub-Headings .............................................................................................. 2

Chapter 2: Review of Literature ........................................................................... 18

Sub-Headings ............................................................................................ 19

Chapter 3: Methodology ...................................................................................... 69

Sub-Headings ............................................................................................ 71

Chapter 4: Results ................................................................................................ 79

Sub-Headings ............................................................................................ 80

Chapter 5: Summary and Conclusions ................................................................. 92

References........................................................................................................... 100

Appendices .......................................................................................................... 122

This table of contents is created using the dot-leader tab

setting option. An alternative would be to use the
automated Table of Contents feature that is enabled when
you use the style headings available to you.

Figure 9: Table of Contents Model

 31

Chapter 1: Introduction

Now that you have reviewed the instructions for preparing a format and

establishing the manual of style you plan to follow, you may begin the important

part of your work on your dissertation or thesis. The best laid plans often go astray,

so even if your template had all the proper bells and whistles, it may yet cause

problems. However, these will be much easier to manage if you have planned from

the start rather than attempted to fit the pre-existing manuscript into the proper

format and style at the end.

Writing your dissertation or thesis may seem like a masterwork in progress,

but please keep in mind that the work really is the first major work in what we all

hope is a long and productive series of contributions to your profession. From this

point on you also represent more than yourself—you will become a reflection of the

effort of your mentors, the standards of Morgan, and the mission of your

professional affiliation. Take both pride and care in how you carry these new

responsibilities.

Good luck with this adventure!

Figure 10: Chapter 1 Sample Page

 32

Chapter 6:
Submitting Your Dissertation or Thesis
to the School of Graduate Studies

When to Submit
When you submit your dissertation or thesis to the School of Graduate Studies, the
electronic copy should be ready for publication.
You must submit your dissertation or thesis within 72 hours after the unconditional pass
of your oral defense of the dissertation or thesis and by the deadline set forth on the
university’s academic calendar (usually at the end of October for December graduation
of the same year and the end of March for May graduation of the same year). If any
corrections are needed due to lack of conformity with the guidelines set forth, the Dean
or the Dean’s designee will provide a list of necessary corrections to you and your
committee chair. Corrections must be made within two weeks of receiving notice that
your dissertation/thesis does not conform to guidelines. All corrections to the
dissertation/thesis must be satisfactorily completed and accepted by the School of
Graduate Studies before a student is eligible to participate in graduation ceremonies.

Before Submitting your Dissertation or Thesis

Please pay your copyright, publishing, printing, and binding fees in the Office of the
Bursar, Montebello Rm. 124.
Keep your receipt so that you may present proof of payment to the School of Graduate
Studies when you submit your dissertation/thesis. Currently, the dissertation or thesis
copyright fee is $65 and the binding fee is $45 (for each requested copy). (The charges
are subject to change according to fee adjustments made by the companies contracted
to copyright, microfilm, bind, print, and ship the dissertations and theses.) The School
of Graduate Studies only requires that you provide for one copy of your dissertation or
thesis for copyright and publication through Proquest/UMI to be placed in the Earl S
Richardson Library. If you choose to have additional copies for yourself, the School of
Graduate Studies will accept an order for a maximum of four manuscripts for personal
use to be print and bound.

Continuous Enrollment
Once you begin writing your dissertation or thesis, you must be continuously enrolled
as a graduate student.
You must be enrolled as a student of Morgan in order for the School of Graduate Studies
to accept your dissertation/thesis. Make sure you are enrolled either in the
Dissertation/Thesis Guidance or Seminar course (or some other graduate credit course)
at the same time you submit your dissertation/thesis.

Signature Pages
Make sure the signature pages of your dissertation or thesis are printed on 8 ½ by 11
inch white paper with a minimum of 25% rag content and at least 20-pound weight.
 33

The only printed pages you provide that will be bound with your dissertation or thesis
are the signed signature pages (see Figure 8: Sample Approval Page for Physical
Manuscript or Submission for ETD). The use of acid-free cotton paper is also
encouraged. This paper is required to give adequate permanence for long-term library
use. You must also submit printed copies of the title and abstract pages, but these are
not required to be on the bond paper.

Error Free Document

Make sure your dissertation or thesis is free of errors in spelling, grammar,
punctuation, and appearance.
As the author, it is your responsibility to make all spelling and grammar corrections prior
to submission. Photographs, scanned documents, and other imported illustrations must
be properly placed within the defined margins and set squarely on the page. Care
should e taken not to reproduce the signatures of people who have submitted relevant
letters and other exhibits as these will be available on the Web. Identity security is of
growing importance.

Upon Submitting your Dissertation or Thesis

You may also be required to complete federal, state, university, or other funding agency
surveys as a part of the degree completion and reporting process. Your diploma will not
be released, nor will your transcript reflect the award of a degree, until appropriate
arrangements for publishing have been made with the School of Graduate Studies.
When dissertations and theses become available for collection at the School of
Graduate Studies, students will receive written notification. The School of Graduate
Studies will not ship bound copies to your residence.

The Submission Process

The following is the statement from the Catalog describing the electronic submission of
dissertations and theses (ETD). Section IV, pages 52–53:

IV. THESIS AND DISSERTATION REQUIREMENTS

In general, students may register for the thesis or dissertation seminar when
they: 1) have met the residency requirement for their program, 2) are in good
academic standing, and 3) have their department’s approval.

1. FORMAL PROCESS FOR SUBMISSION

Degree candidates who have prepared a thesis or dissertation as a partial
fulfillment of the requirements for the masters or doctoral degree are required
to submit the final, approved manuscript in an electronic format as prescribed
by the School of Graduate Studies. In a formal submission interview, the
manuscript is submitted to the Dean of the School of Graduate Studies for
review following the candidate’s oral defense. The thesis or dissertation must be
signed by the Committee members and meet all other requirements prior to its
 34

submission. The candidate must provide an original, signed copy of the

signature page at the time of submission.

2. SUBMISSION PROCEDURES
Procedures and regulations governing the formatting, production, and
submission are published in the Morgan State University School of Graduate
Studies Dissertation and Thesis Handbook, 2010 (currently available on the
School of Graduate Studies Web Site). The Handbook reports the most current
requirements and submission procedures and is updated regularly. Graduate
students submitting a thesis or dissertation to the School of Graduate Studies
will be charged a fee for publishing and copyrighting their work and pay for one
print and bound copy for the Morgan State University Library. The School of
Graduate Studies publishes the most current information on tuition and fees—
including the current publishing fee and copyright fee—and the cost for a
professionally prepared library copy in each Fall and Spring term on the School
of Graduate Studies Web site. All fees are subject to change, and the candidate
is responsible for paying fees in force at the time of submission. Fees are paid
to the Bursar. Payment of the fees must be verified by a receipt from the
cashier’s office; and the cashier’s receipt must be presented at the time of
formal thesis or dissertation submission. Additional copies for personal or for
departmental library can be purchased through UMI Publishing or through an
arrangement with the binder used by the School of Graduate Studies.

3. DEGREE COMPLETION
Students must be enrolled in at least one graduate course, e.g., Thesis
Guidance, Dissertation Guidance, or a regular credit course during the semester,
including summer sessions, that their thesis or dissertation is submitted to the
School of Graduate Studies. Students must be enrolled at the University at the
time their thesis or dissertation is accepted by the School of Graduate Studies.
Students must have made all corrections identified during the defense prior to
submission of their thesis or dissertation to the School of Graduate Studies.

4. CONTINUOUS ENROLLMENT
Students must be continuously enrolled at the University every semester
(excluding summer sessions) once they have begun writing theses or
dissertations (i.e., enrolled in Thesis Seminar, Thesis Guidance, Dissertation
Seminar, or Dissertation Guidance). Students who fail to be continuously
enrolled after having begun writing their thesis or dissertation may be required
to pay the registration of semesters they missed (excluding summer sessions)
prior to the submission of their thesis or dissertation to the School of Graduate
Studies.

Scheduling a Submission Appointment

When you are ready to submit your dissertation or thesis, you must schedule a
submission appointment with the School of Graduate Studies. This appointment will be
with the Dean or the Dean’s designee (typically, the Associate or Assistant Dean). Prior
to being granted permission to make the submission through the ETD portal, the
 35

student must complete all the items on the checklist. These items should be complete
prior to the submission appointment. The items include:

□ Candidate is enrolled this term: Course:

□ Candidate has paid □ fee and □ filed the application for graduation for:
□ College/School/Department Checklist Included [□ Not Applicable].
□ Candidate has paid publication fees. Number of copies: Amount Paid:
□ Four copies of title page for database plus two copies of the abstract.
□ Official signature page with original signatures;
1 times the number of copies plus 1 = ______.
□ An electronic copy of the manuscript in Word or RTF is available to be submitted.
□ Doctoral Candidate has completed Survey of Earned Doctorates.
Go to http://survey.norc.uchicago.edu/doctorate Print the certificate of
completion when you finish. Bring the certificate with you to the authorizing
session.
□ Email of committee chair:

Candidate should have receipts for publication fees and graduation application.
Before submission, please confirm that the above criteria have been met.

The current (2010) fees for copyright and binding are as follows:

Doctoral Dissertation

Copyright Fee $65.00 Pricing below includes all fees:

1 bound copy $110.00
Printing and Binding Fee 2 bound copies $155.00
$45.00 3 bound copies $200.00
4 bound copies $245.00
5 bound copies $290.00

Master’s Thesis
Copyright Fee $65.00 Pricing below includes all fees:
1 bound copy $110.00
Printing and Binding Fee 2 bound copies $155.00
$45.00 3 bound copies $200.00
4 bound copies $245.00
5 bound copies $290.00
Figure 11: Fees for Copyrighting and Publishing
 36

Chapter 7:
Common Mistakes in Preparing Dissertations and Theses

Default Devils
Microsoft Word has a number of default settings that frequently start automatically. Be
very cautious about letting automatic outlining and automatic numbering take over.
Often, turning them off after they have started does not recover what you had originally
meant to accomplish. Inserting pages can often create sections that carry the format of
the original document into your final document. If you type a page as a new page while
revising, copying that page into your master document will carry the format of the new
page into the master document and create an invisible section. To avoid the problems
of shifting margins and floating page numbers, create a template and type all notes,
appendixes, references, tables, figures, charts, illustrations, and front matter by
selecting your manuscript template. If no one else is using your computer, you can set
your thesis or dissertation document template as your default template for all
documents for the duration of your time as a degree candidate. If you have not used
your template because you were on a different computer or simply forgot, then, before
inserting the new material into your master document, copy it into a blank template
page. Fix the format errors in this new document and then copy the corrected material
into the master document. Copying the new, improperly formatted material directly
into your master document and then trying to correct the formatting errors after the
fact will result in unexpected (and often unexplained) consequences. You will soon
discover how, to coin a phrase, “the devil is in the defaults.”

Basic Pagination
In your dissertation, create three sections: Abstract (no paging), front matter (small
roman numerals, no number placed on the title page, but it counts as page one), and
the body section. You must use headers or footers for the paging, not the overriding
“place number here” option. Each of the three sections must be marked as
“discontinuous” (or separated) from the previous section (do this after the sections are
created). To remove the page number “i” from the title page, select “different first
page” in the header/footer formatting list. The first page of the body must be an Arabic
1 and it must be on the page.

When in difficulty, try using the Help function of Word.

Setting Tabs and Spacing

APA, MLA, IEEE, Chicago Manual of Style, and other style manuals all recommend an
indentation set at one-half inch. The default first tab in both Microsoft Word and
WordPerfect is set at one-half inch. A block quotation uses this single tab width to
indent the entire blocked quotation. This default should not be altered. Another
default that needs to be removed is the automatic extra line placed between
paragraphs. None of the style manuals allows for this either.
 37

Fonts
Fonts are distinguished by their height (point size), their X ratio (the width of the X in
relation to with the height of the X; making some fonts narrow and others “square”; for
instance, the Verdana X is slightly more square than the Ariel X), and whether or not
they have serifs. Serifs are the small, often curved or widened elements added to
individual letters. They are noticeable in the T in Times New Roman and clearly absent
in T in Ariel. San serif (“without” serifs) fonts are easily read on computers screens and
projected media like presentation projectors and conventional television screens. Serif
fonts enable comfortable reading in printed media. Computer screens originally had 72
dpi (dots per inch) and thus could not render the serifs accurately. Print media, like a
news magazine, typically have about 1270 dpi (HD TV, by the way, is up to 1080 lines for
the entire screen). The “camera ready copy” of a 600 x 600 dpi laser printer has
essentially one-quarter of the detail of professional print media. Post Script printing
allowed for the information to be included in a digital document that enabled rich
production of print media. Portable Document Format (PDF) was an early means of
encoding and transferring Post Script documents digitally. Now, a standard PDF can be
saved with more detail than the laser printer requires, and publishers have been using
the PDF as a replacement of printer’s “page proofs” (an actual print run of the type-set
manuscript as a test and to complete a final edit). As you begin publishing book
chapters and full book manuscripts, you are likely to use PDF documents to review the
final copy-edited material digitally.

Ellipses
The common formation of … as the ellipses is incorrect. Ellipses are formed with three
spaced periods (as in “ . . .” rather than “…”). See the Publication Manual (APA, 2009),
Sections 6.08, for instructions regarding the APA style for ellipses. The most detailed
discussion of this can be found in the Chicago Manual of Style (Fifteenth Edition,
Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2003), which distinguishes a three dot method,
a three or four dot method, and the rigorous method in Section 11.51 through 11.65.
Change throughout. The punctuation “…” is actually a part of mathematical equations
and has specific meaning.

Types of Dashes
There are at least seven general types of dashes and hyphens. They all have very
specific uses.

Hyphen = -
Word separator.

En dash = –
Shows numerical range, such as 1995–1998 or pages 32–35.
 38

Em dash = —
Used in creating appositive phrases to set of special text in a sentence.

Minus = −
The minus sign in a formula indicating subtration.

Negative sign = −
The negative sign used to express a negative number.

Figural dash = -
The hyphen-like item that separates numbers in a telephone number or a
social security number.

Double/triple dashes plus = ———

The dashes used in bibliographies to indicate the repeated name of an
author.

These each have a specific use. In Word, “Insert > Symbol > Special Characters” gets you
to all the characters and their keyboard shortcuts. Please review the Publication
Manual of the American Psychological Association, Sixth Edition (American Psychological
Association, 2009), regarding how to form dashes and how to distinguish dashes from
hyphens. See Publication Manual (APA, 2009), Sections 4.13 and 4.06. For another
source, review the Chicago Manual of Style (Fifteenth Edition, Chicago: The University of
Chicago Press, 2003), Sections 6.80 through 6.96 for proper usage and formation.

Three-Em-Dash
The proper three em-dash is constructed from six hyphens. This is the proper Chicago
Manual approach. For an article being sent for publication, six hyphens would do (they
will be typesetting the piece from your electronic contribution). For a dissertation
meant to be a book-like production, a true three em-dash is the most desirable. As in:

――— . 1790.

Word does not create a three em-dash without some coaxing. Here is the method that
appears to work:

1. Create an em-dash.
—
2. Copy the em-dash so that you have three of them.
———
3. Add a period and several spaces or an “enter” (hard return) after the three
em-dashes.
———.
 39

4. Highlight just the three dashes (not the following space or period) and Select
"Font" to adjust the kerning:
Go to "Font";
Select the "Character Spacing" tab;
Select "Spacing" "Condensed" by 2pts; (You can test the points for your
document and font). This last step removes the spaces between the dashes.
――— .
5. Copy this to your three em-dash locations. The trailing space should help
prevent the kerning from spreading all over your manuscript. Test this (you may
want to test adding the period and two trailing spaces for insurance).

Et al.
The proper form of using et al. is this: Author et al. (2004) or (Author et al., 2004). APA
manual uses the comma in the in text reference, and MLA and Chicago do not. Please
confer with the Publication Manual (APA, 2001), Section 3.95. For the use of et al. in the
Chicago manual, examine the Chicago Manual, Section 16.118. Because it is a common
Latin form, it is not italicized. For its use in a serial list, see Section 6.23.

Serial Comma
The serial comma (the comma before the “and” in “x, y, and z”) is required by APA
Manual, MLA; Chicago, and all other major manuals of style as well as the guides to
writing, including Strunk and White. Please use the serial comma (the comma before
the “and” in “x, y, and z”) throughout.

Commas and Periods and Quotation Marks

While completing a final version of your dissertation, you may want to check the
punctuation order for references and quote marks. Periods and commas always go
inside the quote marks unless a reference follows, then after the closed parenthesis.

Landscaped Pages
The page numbers on landscaped tables must appear in the same position and
orientation as on other pages (that is, as if the page were printed in portrait mode).
Also, landscaped pages must be placed so the top of the landscaped table is on the left
margin of the portrait orientation (at 1.5 inches).

Landscape pages represent a unique challenge and must be constructed with care.
Methods for constructing them have been described in a number of locations on the
internet, and there are at least three different ways to accomplish the task.
 40

Appendix A: Research Misconduct

(From the Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 235 / Wednesday, December 6, 2000 / Notices, pages
76262-76264.)

Federal Policy on Research Misconduct 2

I. Research3 Misconduct Defined

Research misconduct is defined as fabrication, falsification, or plagiarism in proposing,
performing, or reviewing research, or in reporting research results.
Fabrication is making up data or results and recording or reporting them.
Falsification is manipulating research materials, equipment, or processes, or changing or
omitting data or results such that the research is not accurately represented in the
research record.4
Plagiarism is the appropriation of another person’s ideas, processes, results, or words
without giving appropriate credit.
Research misconduct does not include honest error or differences of opinion.

II. Findings of Research Misconduct

A finding of research misconduct requires that:
There be a significant departure from accepted practices of the relevant research
community; and
The misconduct be committed intentionally, or knowingly, or recklessly; and
The allegation be proven by a preponderance of evidence.

III. Responsibilities of Federal Agencies and Research Institutions5

Agencies and research institutions are partners who share responsibility for the research
process. Federal agencies have ultimate oversight authority for Federally funded research, but
research institutions bear primary responsibility for prevention and detection of research
misconduct and for the inquiry, investigation, and adjudication of research misconduct alleged
to have occurred in association with their own institution.
Agency Policies and Procedures. Agency policies and procedures with regard to
intramural as well as extramural programs must conform to the policy described in this
document.

2
No rights, privileges, benefits or obligations are created or abridged by issuance of this policy alone. The creation or
abridgment of rights, privileges, benefits or obligations, if any, shall occur only upon implementation of this policy by
the Federal agencies.
3
Research, as used herein, includes all basic, applied, and demonstration research in all fields of science, engineering,
and mathematics. This includes, but is not limited to, research in economics, education, linguistics, medicine,
psychology, social sciences, statistics, and research involving human subjects or animals.
4
The research record is the record of data or results that embody the facts resulting from scientific inquiry, and
includes, but is not limited to, research proposals, laboratory records, both physical and electronic, progress reports,
abstracts, theses, oral presentations, internal reports, and journal articles.
5
The term ‘‘research institutions’’ is defined to include all organizations using Federal funds for research, including,
for example, colleges and universities, intramural Federal research laboratories, Federally funded research and
development centers, national user facilities, industrial laboratories, or other research institutes. Independent
researchers and small research institutions are covered by this policy.
 41

Agency Referral to Research Institution. In most cases, agencies will rely on the
researcher’s home institution to make the initial response to allegations of research
misconduct. Agencies will usually refer allegations of research misconduct made directly
to them to the appropriate research institution. However, at any time, the Federal
agency may proceed with its own inquiry or investigation. Circumstances in which
agencies may elect not to defer to the research institution include, but are not limited
to, the following: the agency determines the institution is not prepared to handle the
allegation in a manner consistent with this policy; agency involvement is needed to
protect the public interest, including public health and safety; the allegation involves an
entity of sufficiently small size (or an individual) that it cannot reasonably conduct the
investigation itself.
Multiple Phases of the Response to an Allegation of Research Misconduct. A response to
an allegation of research misconduct will usually consist of several phases, including: (1)
an inquiry—the assessment of whether the allegation has substance and if an
investigation is warranted; (2) an investigation—the formal development of a factual
record, and the examination of that record leading to dismissal of the case or to a
recommendation for a finding of research misconduct or other appropriate remedies;
(3) adjudication— during which recommendations are reviewed and appropriate
corrective actions determined.
Agency Follow-up to Institutional Action. After reviewing the record of the investigation,
the institution’s recommendations to the institution’s adjudicating official, and any
corrective actions taken by the research institution, the agency will take additional
oversight or investigative steps if necessary. Upon completion of its review, the agency
will take appropriate administrative action in accordance with applicable laws,
regulations, or policies. When the agency has made a final determination, it will notify
the subject of the allegation of the outcome and inform the institution regarding its
disposition of the case. The agency finding of research misconduct and agency
administrative actions can be appealed pursuant to the agency’s applicable procedures.
Separation of Phases. Adjudication is separated organizationally from inquiry and
investigation. Likewise, appeals are separated organizationally from inquiry and
investigation.
Institutional Notification of the Agency. Research institutions will notify the funding
agency (or agencies in some cases) of an allegation of research misconduct if (1) the
allegation involves Federally funded research (or an application for Federal funding) and
meets the Federal definition of research misconduct given above, and (2) if the
institution’s inquiry into the allegation determines there is sufficient evidence to
proceed to an investigation. When an investigation is complete, the research institution
will forward to the agency a copy of the evidentiary record, the investigative report,
recommendations made to the institution’s adjudicating official, and the subject’s
written response to the recommendations (if any). When a research institution
completes the adjudication phase, it will forward the adjudicating official’s decision and
notify the agency of any corrective actions taken or planned.
Other Reasons to Notify the Agency. At any time during an inquiry or investigation, the
institution will immediately notify the Federal agency if public health or safety is at risk;
if agency resources or interests are threatened; if research activities should be
suspended; if there is reasonable indication of possible violations of civil or criminal law;
if Federal action is required to protect the interests of those involved in the
investigation; if the research institution believes the inquiry or investigation may be
made public prematurely so that appropriate steps can be taken to safeguard evidence
 42

and protect the rights of those involved; or if the research community or public should
be informed.
When More Than One Agency is Involved. A lead agency should be designated to
coordinate responses to allegations of research misconduct when more than one
agency is involved in funding activities relevant to the allegation. Each agency may
implement administrative actions in accordance with applicable laws, regulations,
policies, or contractual procedures.

IV. Guidelines for Fair and Timely Procedures

The following guidelines are provided to assist agencies and research institutions in developing
fair and timely procedures for responding to allegations of research misconduct. They are
designed to provide safeguards for subjects of allegations as well as for informants. Fair and
timely procedures include the following:

Safeguards for Informants. Safeguards for informants give individuals the confidence
that they can bring allegations of research misconduct made in good faith to the
attention of appropriate authorities or serve as informants to an inquiry or an
investigation without suffering retribution. Safeguards include protection against
retaliation for informants who make good faith allegations, fair and objective
procedures for the examination and resolution of allegations of research misconduct,
and diligence in protecting the positions and reputations of those persons who make
allegations of research misconduct in good faith.
Safeguards for Subjects of Allegations. Safeguards for subjects give individuals the
confidence that their rights are protected and that the mere filing of an allegation of
research misconduct against them will not bring their research to a halt or be the basis
for other disciplinary or adverse action absent other compelling reasons. Other
safeguards include timely written notification of subjects regarding substantive
allegations made against them; a description of all such allegations; reasonable access
to the data and other evidence supporting the allegations; and the opportunity to
respond to allegations, the supporting evidence and the proposed findings of research
misconduct (if any). · Objectivity and Expertise. The selection of individuals to review
allegations and conduct investigations who have appropriate expertise and have no
unresolved conflicts of interests help to ensure fairness throughout all phases of the
process.
Timeliness. Reasonable time limits for the conduct of the inquiry, investigation,
adjudication, and appeal phases (if any), with allowances for extensions where
appropriate, provide confidence that the process will be well managed.
Confidentiality During the Inquiry, Investigation, and Decision-Making Processes. To the
extent possible consistent with a fair and thorough investigation and as allowed by law,
knowledge about the identity of subjects and informants is limited to those who need to
know. Records maintained by the agency during the course of responding to an
allegation of research misconduct are exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of
Information Act to the extent permitted by law and regulation.

V. Agency Administrative Actions

Seriousness of the Misconduct. In deciding what administrative actions are appropriate,
the agency should consider the seriousness of the misconduct, including, but not limited
to, the degree to which the misconduct was knowing, intentional, or reckless; was an
 43

isolated event or part of a pattern; or had significant impact on the research record,
research subjects, other researchers, institutions, or the public welfare.
Possible Administrative Actions. Administrative actions available include, but are not
limited to, appropriate steps to correct the research record; letters of reprimand; the
imposition of special certification or assurance requirements to ensure compliance with
applicable regulations or terms of an award; suspension or termination of an active
award; or suspension and debarment in accordance with applicable governmentwide
rules on suspension and debarment. In the event of suspension or debarment, the
information is made publicly available through the List of Parties Excluded from Federal
Procurement and Nonprocurement Programs maintained by the U.S. General Services
Administration. With respect to administrative actions imposed upon government
employees, the agencies must comply with all relevant federal personnel policies and
laws.
In Case of Criminal or Civil Fraud Violations. If the funding agency believes that criminal
or civil fraud violations may have occurred, the agency shall promptly refer the matter
to the Department of Justice, the Inspector General for the agency, or other appropriate
investigative body.

VI. Roles of Other Organizations

This Federal policy does not limit the authority of research institutions, or other entities, to
promulgate additional research misconduct policies or guidelines or more specific ethical
guidance.
 44

Appendix B: Helpful Bibliographies

Bibliography: Style Manuals

American Institute of Physics. AIP Style Manual. 4th ed. New York: American Institute of
Physics, 1990. 2001. http://www.aip.org/pubservs/style.html (1 Aug 2006).
American Mathematical Society. AMS Author Handbook. rev. ed. Providence, RI:
American Mathematical Society, 1996. ftp://ftp.ams.org/pub/author-
info/documentation/ handbk.pdf (1 Aug 2006).
American Medical Association. American Medical Association Manual of Style: A Guide
for Authors and Editors. 9th ed. Baltimore: Williams and Wilkins, 1997.
American Psychological Association. Publication Manual of the American Psychological
Association, Sixth Edition (American Psychological Association, 2009).
American Society for Microbiology. ASM Style Manual for Journals and Books.
Washington, DC: American Society for Microbiology, 1992.
American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science
Society of America. Publications Handbook and Style Manual. 2nd ed. Madison,
WI: American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil
Science Society of America, 1998.
American Society of Civil Engineers. Information for Authors and Editors.
http://www.pubs.asce.org/authors/guide.html (1 Aug 2006).
American Sociological Association. ASA Style Guide. 2nd ed. Washington, DC: American
Sociological Association, 1997.
Chicago Manual of Style. 15th ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2003.
Council of Biology Editors, Style Manual Committee. Scientific Style and Format: The CBE
Manual for Authors, Editors, and Publishers. 6th ed., rev. Cambridge and New
York: Cambridge University Press, 1994.
Dodd, Janet S., ed. The ACS Style Guide: A Manual for Authors and Editors. 2nd ed.
Washington, DC: American Chemical Society, 1997.
Gibaldi, Joseph. MLA Style Manual and Guide to Scholarly Publishing (Third edition,
2008).
Schall, Joe. A Style Manual for Engineering Students. Edina, MN: Burgess International,
1996.
Turabian, Kate L., John Grossman, and Alice Bennett. A Manual for Writers of Term
Papers, Theses, and Dissertations. 7th ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press,
2007.
Bibliography: Formatting Electronic Sources
Harnack, Andrew, and Gene Kleppinger. “Citation Styles.” Online! A Reference Guide to
Using Internet Sources. 2000.
http://www.bedfordstmartins.com/online/citex.html (1 Aug 2006).
 45

Li, Xia, and Nancy B. Crane. Electronic Styles: A Handbook for Citing Electronic
Information. 2nd ed. Medford, NJ: Information Today, 1996.
Pavlicin, Karen, and Christy Lyon. Online Style Guide: Terms, Usage, and Tips. St. Paul,
MN: Elva Resa, 1998.
Walker, Janice R., and Todd Taylor. The Colombia Guide to Online Style. New York:
Colombia University Press, 1998.

Bibliography: “How-to” Write a Dissertation/Thesis

Balian, Edward S. The Graduate Research Guidebook: A Practical Approach to
Doctoral/Masters Research. 3rd ed. Lanham, MD: University Press of America,
1994.
Bolker, Joan. Writing Your Dissertation in Fifteen Minutes a Day. New York: Henry Holt,
1998.
Borden, Iain, and Katerina Ruedi. The Dissertation: An Architecture Student’s Handbook.
Oxford and Boston: Architectural Press, 2006.
Castetter, William Benjamin, and Richard S. Heisler. Developing and Defending a
Dissertation Proposal. 5th ed.
Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania, Graduate School of Education, 1988.
Chesire, Barbara W. The Best Dissertation—A Finished Dissertation (or Thesis). Portland,
OR: National Book, 1993.
Cone, John D., and Sharon L. Foster. Dissertations and Theses from Start to Finish:
Psychology and Related Fields. Washington, DC: American Psychological
Association, 2006.
Davis, Gordon Bitter, and Clyda A. Parker. Writing the Doctoral Dissertation: A
Systematic Approach. 2nd ed. Hauppauge, NY: Barron’s, 1997.
Estrin, Herman A. and Timothy E. Roche. Guidelines for Writing Theses and
Dissertations. Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hung, 1992.
Fitzpatrick, Jacqueline, et al. Secrets for a Successful Dissertation. Thousand Oaks, CA:
Sage, 1998.
Furst, Edward J. The Writing Requirement for the Doctorate in Education. Lanham, MD:
University Press of America, 1990.
Gardner, David C., and Grace J. Beatty. Dissertation Proposal Guidebook: How to Prepare
a Research Proposal and Get It Accepted. Springfield, IL: Thomas, 1980.
Glatthorn, Allan A.. Writing the Winning Dissertation: A Step-by-Step Guide. Thousand
Oaks, CA: Corwin, 2005.
Holtom, Daniel, and Elizabeth Fisher. Enjoy Writing Your Science Thesis or Dissertation!:
A Step by Step Guide to Planning and Writing Dissertations and Theses for
Undergraduate and Graduate Science Students. London: Imperial College Press,
1999; River Edge, NJ: distributed by World Scientific.
 46

Krenzin, Joan, and James Kanan, eds. Handbook of the Mechanics of Paper, Thesis, and
Dissertation Preparation. 2nd ed. Washington, DC: American Sociological
Association, 1997; distributed by ASA Teaching Resources Center.
Levine, S. Joseph. Writing and Presenting Your Thesis or Dissertation. rev. 11 Feb. 2006.
http://www.learnerassociates.net/dissthes/ (1 Aug 2006).
Locke, Lawrence F., et al. Proposals That Work: A Guide for Planning Dissertations and
Grant Proposals. 4th ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2000.
Madsen, David. Successful Dissertations and Theses: A Guide to Graduate Student
Research from Proposal to Completion. 2nd ed. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1992.
Martin, Roy. Writing and Defending a Thesis or Dissertation in Psychology and
Education. Springfield, IL: Thomas, 1980.
Mauch, James E., and Jack W. Birch. Guide to the Successful Thesis and Dissertation: A
Handbook for Students and Faculty. 5th ed. New York: M. Dekker, 2003.
Meloy, Judith M. Writing the Qualitative Dissertation: Understanding by Doing. 2nd ed.
Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, 2001.
Murray, Thomas R., and Dale L. Brubaker. Theses and Dissertations: A Guide to Planning,
Research, and Writing. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2000.
Newman, Isadore, et al. Theses and Dissertations: A Guide to Writing in the Social and
Physical Sciences. Lanham, MD: University Press of America, 1997.
Nickerson, Eileen T. The Dissertation Handbook: A Guide to Successful Dissertations. 2nd
ed. Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hung, 1993.
Ogden, Evelyn Hunt. Completing Your Doctoral Dissertation or Master’s Thesis in Two
Semesters or Less. 2nd ed. Lancaster, PA: Technomic, 1993; Scarecrow, 1997.
Piantanida, Maria, and Noreen B. Garman. The Qualitative Dissertation: A Guide for
Students and Faculty. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin, 1999.
Preece, Roy A. Starting Research: An Introduction to Academic Research and
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Start and Complete Your Dissertation. 3rd ed. Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt, 2001.
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Sternberg, David Joel. How to Complete and Survive a Doctoral Dissertation. New York:
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New York: Continuum, 2000.
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Appendix C: Common Problems to Avoid When Writing Your Dissertation or Thesis

Inconsistency
Do not mix paper types, colors, and quality; paper should maintain the same
quality paper from 1st page to last.
Do not combine font styles and sizes, unless otherwise noted.
Do not use more than one type of justification. In other words, do not include
full and ragged right justification.
In general and based on the standards of your respective style manual, avoid
switching back and forth from active (Alice Walker wrote The Color Purple) to
passive voice (The Color Purple was written by Alice Walker).

Improper Emphasis
Do not use boldface or italics to emphasize words, phrases, or sentences, unless
your style manual allows for such emphasis.
Do not use capital letters to emphasize words, phrases, or sentences.
Do not underline words, phrases, or sentences in order to stress their
significance.

Sloppy Citations
Do not mix citation styles or “pick and choose” different elements from more
than one style.
Do not give your References section a chapter label.
Do not use your References (or Works Cited) and Bibliography (or Works
Consulted) sections as if they are one unit. Each list is separate and should be
implemented based on your explicit purpose and the objective of each
compilation.
Do not cite a source in the body of your text without also including the source in
your References. Your body citations and Reference listings should follow a 1 to
1 correspondence.
Do not include tables and figures without “source” notes.
Above all, and whenever possible (i.e. if the original source is not “unknown”),
you should be citing primary sources. Only in rare instances would you need to
cite secondary sources. Never cite a secondary source as a primary one.

Committee/Student Rapport
Do not have your committee members sign your Approval Page without having
first read the final manuscript.

Inflated Dedications and Acknowledgements

Avoid using dedications and acknowledgements as an occasion to name
extended family members or a wide circle of friends.
Avoid using dedications and acknowledgements as an occasion for extensive
personal testimonies or religious professions of faith.
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Do keep dedications and acknowledgements as an occasion to acknowledge in a

concise manner those who have been particularly instrumental or supportive in
the writing of your dissertation/thesis.